July 2023 - Page 18 of 25

UN Humanitarian Chief: Sudan Appears To Be in a Brutal Civil War

Posted on 07/11/2023 by SeeAF

Sudan appears to be in a civil war “of the most brutal kind” and the world needs a new forum for talks in pursuit of a cease-fire, the United Nations humanitarian chief told The Associated Press Monday.

Martin Griffiths spoke as regional leaders met in neighboring Ethiopia following the breakdown of peace talks in Saudi Arabia in June. Egypt says it will host leaders from Sudan’s neighbors Thursday in search of peace, with few details.

“We don’t have a place, a forum, where the two parties are present … where we can broker the kind of basic agreements that we need to move supplies and people,” Griffiths said. He called Sudan the toughest place in the world for humanitarian workers in terms of access and warned that the crisis will only worsen as the fighting spreads to new areas.

“We have to re-create the architecture that we had for a little while in Jeddah,” he said of the Saudi- and U.S.-mediated talks. He criticized those discussions as “very clunky, very time consuming,” but said at least “it did produce some real movements” in facilitating aid access.

Sudan descended into chaos after fighting broke out between top army Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan and his rival, Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, on April 15.

The army and RSF have agreed to at least 10 temporary cease-fires, but all have failed. Riyadh and Washington, in adjourning negotiations, accused both forces of failing to respect the agreements.

The conflict has killed over 3,000 people and wounded over 6,000 others, Sudan Health Minister Mohammed Ibrahim said last month and warned that the true death toll is likely to be far higher. More than 2.9 million people have fled their homes.

“If I were Sudanese, I find it hard to imagine that this isn’t a civil war … of the most brutal kind,” the U.N. humanitarian chief said. “Part of that is it’s not limited to one place, it’s spreading, it’s viral … it’s a threat to the state itself … and if that doesn’t qualify for being a civil war, I don’t know what does.”

Griffiths said there is a pressing need to create a forum to facilitate humanitarian access and local cease-fires so trucks and goods can get into specific areas. Any new forum should have greater representation for humanitarian organizations, he said.

In Sudan’s capital, RSF troops appear to have the upper hand in the streets, having commandeered civilian homes and turned them into operational bases. The army has retaliated with airstrikes that have struck residential areas and sometimes hospitals.

In the western Darfur region, the conflict’s other epicenter, entire villages have been overrun by RSF fighters and their allied militias, forcing tens of thousands of residents to flee to neighboring Chad.

In the province of West Darfur, the fighting has morphed into ethnic violence, U.N. officials have said, with the RSF and Arab militias reportedly targeting non-Arab tribes. Activists and tribal leaders from the province say residents have been killed, women and girls raped, and properties looted and burned.
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Russian Air Antics Helping Islamic State, Pentagon Says

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

The repeated harassment of U.S. drones by Russian fighter pilots in the skies over Syria is again drawing the ire of U.S. officials who now warn Russia’s antics are serving to help save key terror leaders from almost certain death.

U.S. military and defense officials have complained for months about increasing Russian harassment of U.S. drones and repeated incursions into the airspace over U.S. positions in Syria. But in the latest reported incident, the U.S. says Russian jets spent hours harassing two U.S. drones that were being used to track down and kill a senior Islamic State leader.

“It is almost as if the Russians are now on a mission to protect ISIS leaders,” Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said Monday in response to a question from VOA.

“They know exactly where we operate and so there is no excuse for Russian forces’ continual harassment of our MQ-9s after years of U.S. operations in the area aimed at the enduring defeat of ISIS,” Singh added, using an acronym for the Islamic State, also known as IS or Daesh.

U.S. Central Command announced Sunday the drones successfully tracked and killed Usamah al-Muhajir in eastern Syria on Friday, noting the same drones, earlier in the day “had been harassed by Russian aircraft in an encounter that had lasted almost two hours.”

Russia’s harassment of the drones used to kill al-Muhajir came a day after the U.S. accused Russian pilots of forcing U.S. drones to take evasive maneuvers in two separate incidents over a 24-hour period.

Those incidents, spanning this past Wednesday and Thursday, included what U.S. Central Command described as close flybys by Russian fighter jets that deployed flares and engaged their afterburners in an attempt to damage the drones’ electronic systems.

Singh declined to say Monday whether any of the incidents allowed other IS targets to escape, instead noting that at least on Friday the U.S. drones were able to successfully complete their mission.

Russia’s embassy in Washington has yet to respond to VOA requests for comment.

In June, the combined forces air component commander for U.S. Central Command accused Russian pilots in Syria of “buffoonery in the air.”

“Anytime you have an air force that has fallen so low on the professional ladder, that they’re giving medals for buffoonery in the air, you’ve really got to wonder what they’re thinking,” Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich told reporters at the time, adding Russia’s actions were allowing IS to rebuild.

“They are running training camps and they’re building up their capabilities because the Russians and the [Syrian] regime are either incapable or unwilling to put pressure on ISIS,” he said. “They’re letting the ISIS threat grow right under their nose.”

The U.S. has about 900 troops in Syria to combat the threat from IS.

Intelligence estimates by United Nations member states shared in a report earlier this year indicate the terror group has about 2,500 to 3,500 fighters across Syria and Iraq.
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US Marines Without Confirmed Leader for First Time in 100 Years

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

The U.S. Marine Corps is without a confirmed leader for the first time in a century as General David Berger stepped down as commandant on Monday and a Republican senator is blocking approval of his successor.

Berger took over as the 38th commandant in July 2019, and is required to leave the job after four years. General Eric Smith, currently the assistant commandant, has been nominated to be the next leader, but will serve in an acting capacity because he hasn’t been confirmed by the Senate.

Under the law, Smith can serve as the acting commandant, but he can do nothing that would presume confirmation. As a result, he can’t move into the main residence or the commandant’s office, or issue any new formal commandant’s planning guidance, which is traditional for a new leader. He has the authority to implement new policies such as budget, training and other personnel decisions.

Smith’s promotion delay is the first of what could be many top-level military officers held up by Senator Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from the southern state of Alabama. Tuberville has stalled all nominations for senior military jobs because he disagrees with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s decision to have the Defense Department pay for travel when a service member has to go out of state to get an abortion or other reproductive care. Abortion is now illegal in Alabama.

Speaking at a ceremony at the Marine Barracks Washington, just down the street from Capitol Hill, Austin and Berger called on the Senate to take action.

“We need the Senate to do their job so that we can have a sitting commandant that’s appointed and confirmed. We need that house to be occupied,” said Berger, with a nod to the commandant’s quarters at the edge of the parade field.

Austin and other Pentagon officials have pressed the Senate to move forward, saying that delays are already impacting more than 200 military officers, and many key leaders.

“You know, it’s been more than a century since the U.S. Marine Corps has operated without a Senate confirmed commandant,” Austin said during the ceremony.

Because of Berger’s requirement to step down in July, the Marine job is the first of the military chiefs to be affected by Tuberville. The Army, Navy and Air Force are all expected to face the same delay later this year, as could the nomination of the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The current chairman, Army General Mark Milley, leaves his job at the end of September. General Charles Q. Brown, the current chief of the Air Force, has been nominated to replace Milley, and is scheduled to go before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his hearing on Tuesday.

The hold, however, is also impacting scores of one-, two- and three-star officers who are assigned to new commands but can’t move on. It also affects their families, who usually relocate over the summer to their new military communities so school-age children can settle in before fall.

“Smooth and timely transitions of confirmed leadership are central to the defense of the United States and to the full strength of the most powerful fighting force in history,” said Austin.

Smith hit the thorny issue head on during his remarks at the ceremony Monday — saying he wanted to get one thing out fast.

“If you’re saying, ‘what am I supposed to call you?’ ACMC. That is my title, and one that I’m proud of,” said Smith, using the shorthand for his assistant commandant role. But he quickly added, “to make sure that there is no confusion — all orders, directives and guidance, which were in effect this morning remain in effect, unless I direct otherwise. Further guidance to the force will follow.”

Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said Monday that as of last Friday, there were 265 senior officers whose promotions have been held up by Tuberville, and that number could leap to 650 by the end of the year if the issue isn’t corrected. She noted that in more than 100 cases, officers — like Smith — would be forced to do two jobs at the same time because no one can move up.

The last time the Corps was led by an acting commandant was in 1910.

Smith, a career infantry officer, is a highly decorated Marine who served multiple tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, including time in Fallujah and Ramadi during heavy combat in 2004 and 2005 in Operation Iraq Freedom. He later was the senior military adviser to Defense Secretary Ash Carter and in 2019 took over as the deputy commandant for combat development.
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In First for Spain, Judge Sentences Reporter to Prison

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

The killing of a newly qualified teacher who was kidnapped, raped and murdered by a man who had only recently been released from jail shocked Spain. 

But a legal case against a journalist who had covered the subsequent investigation and trial has also sent shock waves through the media community. 

Laura Luelmo, a 26-year-old teacher who had just moved to El Campillo, was killed December 2018 in a village in southern Spain. 

Her death led to questions in the Spanish parliament over the release of convicted killers after it emerged that the suspect, Bernardo Montoya, had served 17 years behind bars for beating an elderly woman to death. 

In 2021, Montoya was found guilty of murder, rape and kidnapping and was jailed for life. He denied any wrongdoing. 

But in the first case of its kind in Spain, a court later handed down a two-year prison sentence to a journalist accused of revealing details from a judicial investigation that had been placed under a secrecy order.

Judges in the case argued that the journalist, who at the time worked for the regional daily, Huelva Información, reported details that were not in the public interest and had violated the deceased’s right to privacy.

‘Not good for democracy’

The ruling troubles Javier Ronchel, director of Huelva Información.

“We are very worried because this case goes against the fundamental principles of the Spanish constitution, which guarantees the freedom of expression,” he told VOA. 

“It is very dangerous for the profession of journalism. The judges are judging what is news and what is not. This is dangerous. As journalists and professionals, we have this ability to decide what is news,” Ronchel said.

Kathy Kiely, the Lee Hills chair of Free Press Studies at the Missouri School of Journalism in the U.S., told VOA that this was a classic case of “killing the messenger.”

“We don’t need Spain to be putting a journalist in jail. It is not good for democracy,” she said in a telephone interview.

“Really, what they are doing is punishing a journalist for reporting a terrible crime. The anger should be directed at the person who carried out the crime.  I can understand the family, but the judges should be better than that,” Kiely said.

VOA tried to contact judicial authorities in Huelva and the Spanish Ministry of Justice for comment on the case but did not receive a response to its emails.

Judges covering criminal cases in Spain regularly impose secrecy orders during investigations, but aspects of the case are often leaked to the media. The right to free expression is enshrined in the Spanish constitution and can be used by the media as a defense if challenged. 

Legal right to privacy

In its ruling that was made public last week, the court said the journalist, who requested anonymity, had contravened Luelmo’s right to privacy. Under Spanish law, victims still have a right to privacy even when deceased.

The case against the newspaper was brought by Luelmo’s family as a civil case and the public prosecutor in a rare criminal prosecution. 

Luelmo’s family and the prosecutor argued that the newspaper reported details of injuries and from the post-mortem examination that were not in the public interest.

In the legal judgment, seen by VOA, the family and prosecutor complained about six aspects of the reporting. 

These included reporting on the conflicting versions that Montoya gave to police about the crime, details of injuries, toxicology reports and a CCTV picture of Luelmo before she was kidnapped. 

Three judges ruled that the reports “affected the personal sphere of the deceased and her family, which caused damage without any legitimate interest other than that of offering exclusives and scoops at the expense of illegality.”

The ruling said that for the media to use the defense of freedom of expression, they had to justify that the person concerned was a public figure and merited the attention of media reports.

As part of the sentence, the Huelva Court banned the reporter from working in journalism for two years, fined her $3,510 and ordered her to pay $32,910 in compensation to Luelmo’s parents. Another journalist at Huelva Información was found not guilty. 

The 41-year-old journalist, who has since left the newspaper, told VOA she does not want to be named until the appeals court rules on the case. 

She denies any wrongdoing and is currently free pending appeal. 

She told VOA she didn’t want to comment on the sentence but added via email, ”I have a very clear conscience because I have only done my job, as I always did as a court journalist in my 17 years of experience.” 

In her email, she thanked her colleagues for “the respect and support they have shown me. It’s touching to receive so many expressions of affection.” 

Her case caught the attention of local media association AMI and international watchdog Reporters Without Borders, or RSF.

The AMI, which represents 80 Spanish media outlets, said the ruling was a “serious violation of the right to freedom of information.”

On social media, RSF posted: “Serious! The Huelva Court sentences a journalist to two years for revealing secrets in a summary, something quite common in court journalism.” The watchdog added that it hoped Spain’s Supreme Court would reverse the decision.
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Biden in Vilnius for NATO Summit After Brief London Stop

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

U.S. President Joe Biden is in Vilnius, Lithuania, for the NATO summit after stopping in London to meet British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Their meeting was overshadowed by Washington’s announcement that it would send cluster munitions to Ukraine, despite the bombs being banned by 123 nations, including Britain. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara is traveling with the president and has this report.
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Disgraced US Gymnastics Physician Stabbed in Prison

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

Larry Nassar, the disgraced U.S. sports physician who was sentenced to decades in prison for sexually abusing top American female gymnasts, was stabbed repeatedly in an altercation with another inmate at a federal prison, U.S. authorities reported Monday.

Nassar, 59, who once worked for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, was stabbed Sunday in the back, chest and neck at the United States Penitentiary Coleman in the southern state of Florida. Authorities said he was in stable condition and that an investigation is underway.

At trials in recent years, Nassar admitted to sexually assaulting athletes in the guise of medical treatment and examinations, with U.S. gold medalists Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman among his victims. In 2021, the athletes reached a settlement requiring the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, USA Gymnastics and their insurers to pay them $380 million in damages.

Judges sentenced Nassar to a minimum of 40 years and a maximum of 175 years in prison for his crimes. More than 160 girls, women and parents gave wrenching testimony at one trial describing the impact of his sexual abuse.

Two years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a scathing report detailing how senior officials at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States’ lead criminal investigative unit, failed to initially investigate sexual abuse claims against Nassar, allowing his abuse to continue.
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Indonesia Welcomes Return of Jewels, Temple Carvings as Important Step in Global Restitution Effort

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

The Netherlands and Indonesia on Monday hailed the return of hundreds of cultural artifacts taken — sometimes by force — during colonial times as a major step forward in restitution efforts worldwide.

The items, ranging from valuable jewels to 13th-century temple carvings, were officially handed back to Indonesia at a ceremony at the Museum Volkenkunde in Leiden.

“We are really delighted. This is a very historic moment for both us, Indonesia, and the Netherlands. And the relationship between the two,” said Hilmar Farid, director general of cultural heritage at Indonesia’s Ministry of Culture. “But I think what we have achieved so far is also a very significant contribution to the global debate about returning of colonial objects.”

The Dutch government announced the return last week of the Indonesian treasures and looted artifacts from Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry welcomed the decision and said the Indian Ocean nation will work to preserve the items, including a richly decorated ceremonial cannon.

They are the first artifacts returned home on the advice of a Dutch committee set up in 2022 to assess requests by countries for restitution of artifacts in state museums. The committee is considering more restitution requests from Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Nigeria.

Indonesia got back more than the trove of glittering jewels and ancient carvings from a temple in Java, said Farid.

“We consider these objects as our missing items in our historical narrative and of course they play different roles symbolically, culturally,” he said. Their return means Indonesia can “reintegrate them into their cultural contexts. And that is, of course, of symbolic importance to us.”

Gunay Uslu, the Dutch state secretary for culture and media, called the presentation Monday “a historically, important” event that resonates beyond the Netherlands and its former colony.

“It’s also an important moment for the world because it’s about colonial objects in a colonial context. So it’s a sensitive topic,” she said.

A Berlin museum announced in January it is ready to return hundreds of human skulls from the former German colony of East Africa. In 2021, France said it was returning statues, royal thrones and sacred altars taken from the West African nation of Benin. And last year, Belgium returned a gold-capped tooth belonging to the slain Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba.
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Iran’s President to Set Out on Rare Africa Tour

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeAF

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will embark Tuesday on a rare Africa tour in the latest diplomatic efforts to reduce the Islamic republic’s isolation by forging new alliances.

The three-day trip — which includes Kenya, Uganda, and Zimbabwe — will be the first by an Iranian president to Africa in 11 years.

Raisi will head a delegation that includes Iran’s foreign minister as well as senior businesspeople. He is scheduled to meet with presidents from the three countries, according to the official IRNA news agency.

On Monday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani described the trip as “a new turning point” which could bolster economic and trade ties with African nations.

He also said the rapprochement is based “on common political views” between Tehran and the three African countries.

Iran has stepped up its diplomacy in recent months to reduce its isolation and offset the impact of crippling sanctions reimposed since the 2018 withdrawal of the United States from a painstakingly negotiated nuclear deal.

On Saturday, Raisi welcomed Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf in a bid to boost relations with Algiers.

Last week, the Islamic republic became a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization which includes Russia, China and India.

In March, Iran agreed to restore ties with its regional rival Saudi Arabia under a China-mediated deal. It has since been looking to reestablish ties with other countries in the region, including Egypt and Morocco.

In June, Raisi set out on a Latin America tour that included Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba before a trip to Indonesia.
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Relentless Rain Floods Roads in Northeast, Leads to Evacuations, Rescues

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

Heavy rain washed out roads and forced evacuations in the Northeast on Monday as more downpours were forecast throughout the day. One person in New York drowned as she was trying to leave her home.

The slow-moving storm reached New England in the morning after hitting parts of New York and Connecticut. Heavy downpours with possible flash flooding were forecast in parts of Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.

One of the worst hit places was New York’s Hudson Valley, where rescuers found the body of a woman in her 30s whose home was surrounded by water. The force of the flash flooding dislodged boulders, which rammed the woman’s house and damaged part of its wall, Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus told The Associated Press. Two other people escaped.

“She was trying to get through (the flooding) with her dog,” Neuhaus said, “and she was overwhelmed by tidal-wave type waves.”

He said many roads and bridges were washed out. Officials believed everyone was accounted for, but they were trying to reach people to make sure they were OK.

Officials say the storm has already wrought tens of millions of dollars in damage. In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a state of emergency Sunday for Orange County. That included the town of Cornwall, near the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, where many roads were flooded and closed off.

The storm also interrupted air and rail travel. As of early Monday, there were hundreds of flight cancellations at Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports and more than 200 canceled at Boston’s Logan Airport in the last 24 hours, according to the Flightaware website. Amtrak temporarily suspended service between Albany and New York.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott declared a state of emergency on Sunday, in advance of Monday’s rain. Some campers and people caught in their homes have been rescued in central and southern Vermont, and more reports have been coming in, said Mark Bosma, spokesperson for the state emergency management office.

By the morning, some towns reported 2 1/2 to 4 inches (6.35 centimeters to 10.16 centimeters) of rain since midnight, and similar totals were expected during the day, said Robert Haynes, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Burlington, Vermont.

“We still look like we’re on track for that potentially significant, locally catastrophic flooding,” Haynes said.

Vermont had some of its worst weather during Tropical Storm Irene in August 2011, when it got 11 inches (28 centimeters) of rain in 24 hours.

“The impacts might not be quite as widespread, but there will probably be a number of locations in central Vermont that reach that threshold,” Haynes said.

Irene killed six in the state, washed homes off their foundations and damaged or destroyed more than 200 bridges and 500 miles (805 kilometers) of highway.
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Top Republicans Gearing Up to Investigate Hunter Biden Case

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

The Republicans who lead three key House committees are joining forces to probe the Justice Department’s handling of charges against Hunter Biden after making sweeping claims about misconduct at the agency.

Leaders of the House Judiciary, Oversight and Accountability, and Ways and Means committees opened a joint investigation into the federal case into President Joe Biden’s youngest son days after it was announced last month that he will plead guilty to the misdemeanor tax offenses as part of an agreement with the Justice Department.

Representatives Jim Jordan of Ohio, James Comer of Kentucky and Jason Smith of Missouri have since issued a series of requests for voluntary testimony from senior officials at the Justice Department, FBI and Internal Revenue Service as they investigate what they claim is improper interference. Republicans have also requested a special counsel review of supposed retaliation against the whistleblowers who came forward with the claims.

The congressional inquiry was launched after the House Ways and Means Committee, led by Smith, voted last month to publicly disclose hundreds of pages of testimony from the IRS employees who worked on the Hunter Biden case.

The transcripts of Greg Shapley and an unidentified agent detail what they called a pattern of “slow-walking investigative steps” and delaying enforcement actions in the months before the 2020 election won by Joe Biden.

The Justice Department has denied the whistleblower claims and said repeatedly that U.S. Attorney David Weiss in Delaware, the federal prosecutor who led the investigation, had “full authority” of the case.

Here’s what to know about the emerging investigation.

Investigating IRS whistleblower claims

In April, the first IRS whistleblower, Shapley, came forward when his attorney reached out to GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa to say that his client had information about a “failure to mitigate clear conflicts of interest in the ultimate disposition” of what was then an ongoing criminal investigation related to Hunter Biden.

Smith, chair of the Ways and Means Committee, who has jurisdiction over the IRS, brought in Shapley in late May for an hourslong interview, where he described several roadblocks that he and several other IRS agents on the case encountered when trying to interview individuals relevant to the investigation or issue search warrants.

The whistleblowers insist their testimony reflects a pattern of inference and preferential treatment in the Hunter Biden case and not just disagreement with their superiors about what investigative steps to take. Justice Department policy has long warned prosecutors to take care in charging cases with potential political overtones around the time of an election, to avoid any possible influence on the outcome.

The most disputed claim from the whistleblowers is that Weiss — first appointed by former President Donald Trump and kept on by the Biden administration — asked the Justice Department in March 2022 to be provided special counsel status in order to bring the tax cases against Hunter Biden in jurisdictions outside Delaware, including Washington, D.C., and California, but was denied.

A second IRS whistleblower, who asked the committee to keep his identity secret, described his persistent frustrations with the way the Hunter Biden case was handled, dating back to the Trump administration under Attorney General William Barr. He said he started the investigation into Hunter Biden in 2015 and delved deeply into his personal life and finances.

Investigating claims of retaliation

Both men have testified that they faced retaliation at the IRS after coming forward with concerns about the handling of the Hunter Biden case. Shapley, who was a career supervisory agent, told the committee that Weiss helped block his job promotion after the tax agency employee reached out to congressional investigators about the Biden case.

The second unidentified whistleblower said he was taken off the Hunter Biden investigation around the same time as Shapley, who was his supervisor. Though he was informed of the decision by officials at the IRS, the second whistleblower believes his removal was actually ordered by officials in the Justice Department. Neither of the men provided lawmakers evidence that was the case, instead citing what they had witnessed internally as they pushed for various investigative steps.

The three Republican chairmen, along with Sens. Grassley and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, sent a letter to the Justice Department asking for an immediate review of the retaliation claims.

“The importance of protecting whistleblowers from unlawful retaliation and informing whistleblowers about their rights under the law cannot be understated. After all, it is the law,” the lawmakers wrote.

Justice Department pushback

The Justice Department has denied the allegations from the whistleblowers, saying that Weiss has had “full authority over this matter, including responsibility for deciding where, when, and whether to file charges as he deems appropriate. He needs no further approval to do so.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland also rebuffed the idea that Weiss, a veteran prosecutor, asked to be designated as a special counsel.

“The only person who has the authority to make someone a special counsel, or refuse to make them a special counsel, is the attorney general,” Garland told reporters last month. He added, “Mr. Weiss never made that request.”

In a June 30 letter, Weiss also further denied the claims by telling House Republicans that the Justice Department “did not retaliate” against Shapley. He also said he was assured by the department that if he sought to bring charges against Hunter Biden in a venue other than Delaware, he would be granted special status to do so. Generally, U.S. attorneys are limited to their own jurisdictions when bringing criminal charges.

Next steps

The three Republican chairmen have provided a deadline of Thursday for the department to begin scheduling nearly a dozen individuals for transcribed interviews. They have said that if the deadline is not met, they will resort to issuing congressional subpoenas to force cooperation.

Weiss said in his recent letter that he would be willing to discuss such topics with congressional officials, but reiterated that he cannot divulge information about the Hunter Biden case because it is an active criminal investigation.

Garland has said publicly that he would not stop Weiss from testifying before Congress. “I would support Mr. Weiss explaining or testifying on these matters when he deems it appropriate,” the attorney general said.
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Nearly 50 Cholera Deaths Reported in South Africa

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeAF

Health officials are reporting a deadly outbreak of cholera in the South African province of Gauteng.

Authorities say nearly 50 people have died, with most of the deaths concentrated in the Hammanskraal area. Cases have been reported in other areas as well.

Medical officials have urged residents to be vigilant about what they consume and to practice good hygiene, like hand washing.

Cholera mainly spreads through contaminated water or food.

Symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration.
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Latest in Ukraine: Putin Met With Wagner Leader After Mutiny, Kremlin Says  

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

Latest developments:

Ukrainian officials say the country’s forces have recaptured 193 square kilometers of territory since launching a counteroffensive last month.





Poland, which serves as a hub for military aid to Ukraine, says it detained a 15th member of a Russian spy network. Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said the person “kept surveillance of military facilities and seaports.”

The Kremlin said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and several Wagner commanders days after Prigozhin led a brief mutiny.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the three-hour meeting included Putin giving his assessment “of the events of June 24,” the date of the rebellion, and listening to the commanders giving their account of what happened.

Peskov said the commanders pledged to continue to fight for Russia.

Wagner has taken part in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Prigozhin had criticized Russia’s military leadership ahead of the mutiny, in which Wagner forces briefly seized control of the headquarters for Russia’s southern military command.

The rebellion ended with a deal brokered by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, allowing Prigozhin and his fighters to move to Belarus.

The mutiny prompted speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin would reshuffle his military leadership.

Russia’s defense ministry shared a video Monday showing Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the country’s most senior general, in his first public appearance since the mutiny.

The video shows Gerasimov receiving a report and giving directions to Russia’s aerospace forces and the military’s intelligence service.

Gerasimov was one of the main targets of Prigozhin’s criticism, along with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

Still absent from public view is Gerasimov’s deputy, General Sergei Surovikin, who has longtime links to Prigozhin.

NATO summit

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday his country could support Sweden joining NATO if the European Union opens the way for Turkey’s long-sought accession to the EU.

Turkey and Hungary are the only NATO members not to give final approval to Sweden’s bid, with Turkey expressing opposition to what it says is a lack of action by Sweden against groups that Turkey considers terrorists.

“Turkey has been waiting at the door of the European Union for over 50 years now, and almost all of the NATO member countries are now members of the European Union,” Erdogan said ahead of the NATO summit this week in Lithuania. “I am making this call to these countries that have kept Turkey waiting at the gates of the European Union for more than 50 years.”

The EU and Turkey launched membership negotiations in 2005. The process has been stalled since 2016 due to concerns about democracy and human rights.

Sweden applied to join NATO along with Finland last year in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Finland was admitted in April. Swedish officials say they have lived up to an agreement with Turkey to institute reforms, including enacting a new anti-terror law.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg was due to hold talks with Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Monday.

Stoltenberg said leaders at the Vilnius summit this week in Lithuania will agree on a “multi-year package of support” for Ukraine.

This package will help Ukraine rebuild its defense and security sector, so that it can defend against further aggression,” Stoltenberg said in a Foreign Affairs article published Monday. “It will ensure that the Ukrainian armed forces are fully interoperable with NATO forces.”

The NATO chief said the alliance will host the first meeting of a new NATO-Ukraine council that will serve as “a platform for decisions and crisis consultation, where NATO allies and Ukraine will sit as equals to tackle shared security concerns.”

Stoltenberg has reiterated that NATO members agree Ukraine will one day join the alliance, while cautioning that adding Ukraine while Russia’s invasion is ongoing is not on the agenda.

U.S. President Joe Biden said in an interview with CNN broadcast Sunday that if Ukraine were to become a NATO member before the war’s end, it would drag the whole alliance into the conflict against Russia. Biden also said that before Ukraine is considered for NATO membership, it will take time to meet all the qualifications required “from democratization to a whole range of other issues.”

Orikhiv attack

Officials in southern Ukraine said Monday that Russian shelling hit a humanitarian aid hub, killing at least four people and injuring 11 others.

The attack happened in the town of Orikhiv in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Yuriy Malashko, the regional governor, said on Telegram that Russia forces used a guided bomb to strike the site in a residential neighborhood and that all four of those killed died at the scene of the attack.

Russia has been accused of striking numerous civilian targets during its invasion that began in February 2022, while denying it targets civilian sites.

Azov release

Zelenskyy tweeted a note of thanks to Turkey on Monday along with a video from his trip that included bringing home five commanders from Ukraine’s Azov unit who were involved in the defense of the city of Mariupol.

The commanders were taken to Turkey as part of a September prisoner swap and were supposed to stay there until the end of the war under the conditions of the deal.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Saturday that Turkey had violated the terms of the agreement and that Russia was not informed in advance that the commanders would be released back to Ukraine.

Some information for this story came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
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HRW Reports Warn About Risks of Ugandan Pipeline

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeAF

“Our first meeting with Total they said, ‘Your standard of living will be elevated, you will no longer be poor,” a 48-year-old Ugandan woman supporting seven children, told Human Rights Watch in March. “Now with the oil project starting, we are landless and are the poorest in the country.”

The woman was referring to the French fossil-fuel giant Total Energies. Her comments are included in a Human Rights Watch 47-page report — Our Trust Is Broken: Loss of Land and Livelihoods for Oil in Uganda — released Monday.

According to the rights organization, if the pipeline is completed, it will result in the displacement of more than 100,000 people, cause food insecurity and household debt. It will also force children to leave schools.

TotalEnergies does not view the project in the same way and said on its website that “Each family whose primary residence is being relocated may choose between a new home and monetary compensation in kind. An accessible, transparent and fair complaints-handling system will be running throughout the process.”

HRW says that while 90% of the people who have lost land to the pipeline project have received financial compensation, the payments were delayed for years and people were inadequately compensated.

Nicolas Terraz, vice president, TotalEnergies E&P Africa, said in a statement on the website, that his company has “been in close contact with the local people and has been striving to minimize the projects’ impact on the local community. We are proud to be a part of these major developments for the Company that promise to transform their host countries.”

“EACOP [East African Crude Oil Pipeline] is also a disaster for the planet and the project should not be completed,” said Felix Horne, HRW senior environment researcher.

“The pipeline route traverses sensitive ecosystems, including protected areas and internationally significant wetlands, posing threats to biodiversity and ecosystems that local communities depend on for their sustenance,” HRW said.

Some financial and insurance companies have already said they will not support the pipeline because of the risks it poses and the backlash from environmental activists.

TotalEnergies said on its website: “The route of the pipeline was designed to avoid areas of environmental interest as much as possible, and generally crosses farming areas.”
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Australia Agrees to Near Record German Defense Deal

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

Australia has confirmed one of the largest defense export deals in its history selling armored combat vehicles to Germany. The $661million announcement was made by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese after he arrived in Berlin ahead of talks at a NATO summit in Lithuania.

Australia will supply Germany with 100 Brisbane-made Boxer armored combat vehicles from 2025.

The deal is worth $661 million and is expected to be formally signed on Tuesday.

Analysts have said the Boxer heavy assault vehicle, which is armed with a cannon, has a reputation for mobility, firepower and protection from explosives with a reinforced hull and wheel housings. The Australian-made assault vehicles will eventually replace aging heavy weapons carriers in German army platoons.

German defense contractor Rheinmetall started producing the Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicle in the Australian state of Queensland in March. It has a contract to supply more than 200 vehicles to the Australian military.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has seen European nations replenish military hardware, which has given Australia the opportunity to export German military technology back to Germany.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters in Berlin, Germany Sunday that it was a historic arms deal for his country.

“This will be one of our largest-ever exports,” he said. [It] will guarantee that the 1,000 jobs that are there in Queensland will go into the future and will be worth in excess of AUD$1 billion for the Australian economy. This will boost our sovereignty; this will increase our defense capability and boost our economy.”

Albanese also is scheduled to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz Monday to discuss the war in Ukraine and security in the Indo-Pacific region.

Australia is one of the largest non-NATO contributors to Kyiv’s war effort.

Canberra has recently approved an additional $73.3m in military aid to Ukraine.

On Sunday, Education Minister Jason Clare told local media that while there had been criticism that Australia’s assistance to repel the February 2022 Russian invasion was not enough, the Canberra government has indicated that more support could be on its way, although no details were given.

Albanese will also meet the New Zealand prime minister, Chris Hipkins, on his trip to Europe, along with the leaders of Japan and South Korea, who have also been invited to attend this week’s NATO summit.
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Latest in Ukraine: Russian Forces Hit Aid Hub in Southeastern Ukraine

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

Latest developments:

Ukrainian officials say the country's forces have recaptured 193 square kilometers of territory since launching a counteroffensive last month.





Poland, which serves as a hub for military aid to Ukraine, says it detained a 15th member of a Russian spy network. Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said the person "kept surveillance of military facilities and seaports."

Officials in southern Ukraine said Monday that Russian shelling hit a humanitarian aid hub, killing at least four people and injuring 11 others.

The attack happened in the town of Orikhiv in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Russia has been accused of striking numerous civilian targets during its invasion that began in February 2022, while denying it targets civilian sites.

NATO summit

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said leaders at a summit this week in Lithuania will agree on a “multi-year package of support” for Ukraine.

“This package will help Ukraine rebuild its defense and security sector, so that it can defend against further aggression,” Stoltenberg said in a Foreign Affairs article published Monday. “It will ensure that the Ukrainian armed forces are fully interoperable with NATO forces.”

Stoltenberg has reiterated that NATO members agree Ukraine will one day join the alliance, while cautioning that adding Ukraine while Russia’s invasion is ongoing is not on the agenda.

The U.S. president also said that before Ukraine is considered for NATO membership, it will take time to meet all the qualifications required “from democratization to a whole range of other issues.” In the meantime, he expressed the U.S. commitment to provide Ukraine “the weaponry they need, the capacity to defend themselves.”

Biden said there is no unanimity in NATO on whether to bring Ukraine into the alliance in the middle of the war, emphasizing that “holding NATO together is really critical.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” that during the summit, he hopes to “do whatever he can to… expedite solutions for an agreement with our partners.”

Cluster bombs

U.S. Senator Tim Kaine and U.S. Representative Barbara Lee, both Democrats, expressed concerns Sunday over the White House decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine to combat the Russian invasion.

Cluster munitions typically release large numbers of smaller bomblets that can kill indiscriminately over a wide area. Those that fail to explode upon contact with the ground then pose a danger for decades. They are banned by more than 100 entities, though not the U.S., Russia and Ukraine.

Kaine, who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he had “some real qualms” about the U.S. decision because it could inspire other countries to bypass the international convention barring the munitions.

“It could give a green light to other nations to do something different as well,” Kaine said on “Fox News Sunday.” However, he said that he “appreciates the Biden administration has grappled with the risks.” Kaine also affirmed that Ukraine had given assurances that they were not going to use these munitions against Russian civilians.

Republican U.S. Representative Michael McCaul, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, told “CNN Sunday,” Ukraine’s counteroffensive was going slowly and that cluster bombs could be a “game changer” for the Ukrainians, adding that he’s pleased the administration has finally agreed to do this.”

However, Lee urged the Biden administration to reconsider the move.

“Cluster bombs should never be used. That’s crossing a line,” she told CNN’s “State of the Union,” adding the United States risked losing its “moral leadership” by delivering cluster bombs to Ukraine.

National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby defended the U.S. decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine, saying Sunday that it will keep the country “in the fight,” as Ukrainian forces are running out of regular artillery ammunition.

Canada, Britain, Spain, Germany and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres all expressed opposition to the U.S. decision.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov welcomed the U.S. announcement and promised the cluster munitions would be used only in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories and not in Russia.

Moscow described the U.S. decision as another egregious example of Washington’s anti-Russian course.

Wagner mutiny     

Russia’s defense ministry shared a video Monday showing Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, the country’s most senior general, in his first public appearance since a brief mutiny by the Wagner mercenary group.

The video shows Gerasimov receiving a report and giving directions to Russia’s aerospace forces and the military’s intelligence service.

Gerasimov was one of the main targets of criticism, along with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, for Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led his forces in the takeover of the headquarters of Russia’s southern military command late last month.

The rebellion prompted speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin would reshuffle his military leadership.

Still absent from public view is Gerasimov’s deputy, General Sergei Surovikin, who has longtime links to Prigozhin.

Azov release

The commanders were taken to Turkey as part of a September prisoner swap and were supposed to stay there until the end of the war under the conditions of the deal.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Saturday that Turkey had violated the terms of the agreement and that Russia was not informed in advance that the commanders would be released back to Ukraine.

VOA White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara, VOA national security correspondent Jeff Seldin and VOA U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer contributed to this report. Some information for this article was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
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Biden, Sunak to Discuss Ukraine Ahead of NATO Summit

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

The war in Ukraine will be high on the agenda Monday as U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meet in London as allies prepare for the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.

It will be the leaders’ sixth meeting in six months. In June, Biden hosted Sunak at the White House, committing to the Atlantic Declaration to cooperate on advanced technologies, clean energy, and critical minerals to counter China’s clout around the world.  

Biden is also due to meet Monday with Britain’s King Charles before traveling to Vilnius, where it remains unlikely NATO will welcome Sweden as its 32nd member due to persistent objections from Turkey.  

During the flight to Britain, Biden spoke on the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a last-minute push to pave the way toward Ankara agreeing to Sweden’s accession – a process that must be unanimous among all current members.  

“I can’t characterize how close, how far, all I can say is that we believe that Sweden should be admitted to NATO as soon as possible,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told VOA aboard Air Force One enroute to London. “We believe that there should be a pathway to do so.”  

In a readout of the call, Ankara stated that Sweden has taken some steps in the right direction but has not made sufficient progress to support Stockholm’s application to join NATO.  

Ankara has accused Sweden of being too lenient toward militant Kurdish organizations that Turkey considers terrorist groups. Following Turkish demands, Sweden has enacted reforms, including a new anti-terrorism law. Erdogan initially accused Finland of doing the same but approved Helsinki’s application to join NATO in April.  

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg invited Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to discuss their positions at a meeting Monday in Vilnius.

Sullivan added that Biden and Erdogan discussed the sale of F-16s, a subject that remains a sticking point for Ankara despite its public denials. In its statement, Ankara noted Erdogan said “it would be incorrect to associate Sweden’s NATO accession with the sale of F-16 jets” while thanking Biden for his support to Ankara on its desire to purchase the fighter planes.  

Lawmakers from both parties in the U.S. Congress, which has authority to approve major weapon sales, insist that Ankara must first drop its objections to Sweden’s accession before the deal can proceed. 

Hungary also opposes Sweden’s bid but has said it will approve it if Turkey assents.  

NATO summit

At their two-day meeting in Vilnius, NATO leaders will discuss bolstering support for Ukraine, which includes hashing out the final wording of a compromise communique that will signal to Kyiv it is moving closer to membership without promises of a quick accession.

Biden has repeatedly said Ukraine must make additional reforms to qualify for NATO membership.  In an interview taped last week, Biden told CNN he thinks it is premature to call for a vote on Ukraine joining NATO.  

“I don’t think it’s ready for membership in NATO,” he said. “I don’t think there’s unanimity in NATO now … in the middle of a war. If the war is going on [and Ukraine was a NATO member], then we’re all in the war. We’re at war with Russia,” because NATO’s charter calls for all its members to defend any individual country when it is attacked.  

Allies will also discuss security guarantees for Kyiv outside of the NATO framework as it moves toward membership. Sullivan said that Washington alongside allies and partners within a multilateral framework will negotiate long-term bilateral security commitments with Ukraine.  

“Meaning that the United States would be prepared to provide in various forms of military assistance, intelligence and information sharing, cyber support and other forms of material support, so that Ukraine can both defend itself and deter future aggression,” he said.  

NATO countries, led by the United States, have sent billions of dollars in armaments to Ukraine, but Russian aerial bombardments have continued to kill dozens of Ukrainian civilians even as Kyiv’s forces have shot down hundreds of incoming missiles. The ones that landed have killed people and destroyed residential buildings.  

Heading to Helsinki next

After the NATO summit, Biden heads to Helsinki, the Finnish capital, to commemorate Finland recently joining the military alliance created in the aftermath of World War II, and to meet with Nordic leaders.  

Finland joined NATO in April, effectively doubling the length of Russia’s border with the world’s biggest security alliance. Biden has characterized the strengthened NATO alliance as a sign of Moscow’s declining influence.  

White House Correspondent Anita Powell contributed to this report.
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North Korea Warns It May Shoot Down US Surveillance Planes Violating Its Airspace

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

North Korea accused the United States on Monday of violating its airspace by conducting surveillance flights and warned that, while Pyongyang was exercising restraint, such flights may be shot down.

Provocative military actions by the U.S. were bringing the Korean peninsula closer to a nuclear conflict, said an unnamed spokesperson of North Korea’s Ministry of National Defense in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.

The report also cited the use of U.S. reconnaissance planes and drones and said Washington was escalating tensions by sending a nuclear submarine near the peninsula.

“There is no guarantee that such a shocking accident as the downing of the U.S. Air Force strategic reconnaissance plane will not happen” in waters east of Korea, the spokesperson said.

The statement cited past incidents of the North shooting down or intercepting U.S. aircraft at the border with South Korea and off the coast. North Korea has often complained about U.S. surveillance flights near the peninsula.

There was no immediate response from the U.S. military stationed in South Korea to a request for comment.

South Korea’s military said North Korea’s claim of airspace violation is not true. It said U.S. air surveillance assets conduct routine reconnaissance flights around the peninsula, adding the allies work closely together to monitor the North.

‘Nuclear blackmail’

The moves by the United States to introduce strategic nuclear assets to the Korean peninsula is “the most undisguised nuclear blackmail” against North Korea and regional countries and presents a grave threat to peace, KCNA said.

“Whether the extreme situation, desired by nobody, is created or not on the Korean peninsula depends on the future action of the U.S., and if any sudden situation happens … the U.S. will be held totally accountable for it,” it said.

U.S. and South Korean forces have been conducting air and navy drills this year that involved a U.S. aircraft carrier and heavy bombers. A U.S. nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine also made a port call at Busan in South Korea last month.

The North’s statement denounced what it called a U.S. move to deploy a strategic nuclear submarine carrying nuclear warheads to the Korean peninsula for the first time since 1981.

In April, the leaders of South Korea and the U.S. agreed a U.S. Navy nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine will visit South Korea for the first time since the 1980s, but no timetable has been given for such a visit.

It was part of a plan to boost the deployment of American strategic assets aimed at a more effective response to North Korea’s threats and weapons tests in defense of its ally South Korea.

In June, a U.S. B-52 strategic bomber took part in air military drills with South Korea in a show of force following North Korea’s failed launch of a spy satellite at the end of May.

‘Determination to deter’

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said it was time to show “the international community’s determination to deter North Korea’s nuclear weapons program is stronger than North Korea’s desire to develop nuclear weapons,” in written comments to the Associated Press published on Monday.

Yoon is scheduled to attend the NATO summit in Lithuania this week where he is expected to seek greater cooperation with NATO members over North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, his office has said.
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Gambia Says It Repatriated Nearly 300 Migrants in 2 Weeks

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeAF

The Gambia has repatriated 296 migrants in a two-week period, more than half of whom had been stranded in Libya, the ministry of foreign affairs said on Sunday.

One hundred and forty Gambians were repatriated between June 21 and July 4 after authorities in Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco each intercepted boats carrying citizens of the west African nation, a ministry spokeswoman confirmed.

A total of 231 Gambians had been aboard the three boats, the ministry said in a statement, but many had “absconded” before being returned.

Meanwhile, 156 Gambians were on June 24 repatriated from Libya, where they had been stranded, it said.

On Thursday, Human Rights Watch accused Tunisia of expelling hundreds of sub-Saharan Africans to a desert area near the Libyan border since July 2, following violence against migrants in the city of Sfax.

“Regarding the disturbing video of migrants in Tunisia circulating on social media, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is closely working… to ascertain their numbers and verify their nationalities as part of the evacuation procedures,” the statement said.

Earlier this year, West African nations including Burkina Faso, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali and Senegal repatriated hundreds of citizens from Tunisia amid a wave of racist attacks there.

It followed a tirade by the Tunisian president blaming “hordes of illegal migrants from sub-Saharan Africa” for crime and alleging a “criminal plot” to change the country’s demographic make-up.
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West African Bloc Names Nigeria’s Tinubu as New Head

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeAF

West African heads of state on Sunday chose Nigeria’s new president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to lead their regional bloc for the next year, replacing Guinea-Bissau’s leader, Umaro Sissoco Embalo, AFP journalists reported.

Speaking at a summit in Bissau after being named chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Tinubu said democracy was “the best form of government,” despite being “very tough to manage.”

“We need it, to be an example to the rest of Africa and the world,” he said. “We will not allow coup after coup in West Africa.”

Three ECOWAS members — Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso — have undergone five putsches since 2020.

Omar Alieu Touray, president of the ECOWAS commission, urged those countries’ ruling juntas to respect agreed-upon deadlines to hand power to civilian leaders.

“In the event of a failure to meet the transition deadlines, major sanctions could be imposed,” he said.

The West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) on Saturday agreed to lift a suspension of Mali imposed in January 2022 over the military’s timeline for returning to civilian rule.

ECOWAS had also imposed a range of measures against the Sahel state but lifted them in July 2022 after the junta agreed to a March 2024 transition.

On Sunday, Touray said ECOWAS had set up a commission to examine security options in Mali as the U.N. winds down its decadelong peacekeeping mission there.

“This commission has 90 days to reflect and make proposals,” he said.

Mali has since 2012 been battling a jihadist insurgency that has since spread to Burkina Faso and Niger.

Tinubu — who was in May sworn in as president of Africa’s largest economy — said ECOWAS members would pursue “inclusive” economic integration in the year ahead.

“We should serve a warning to exploiters that our people have suffered enough,” he said on Sunday. “I am with you — and Nigeria, we are back.”
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Still ‘No’ on Sweden’s NATO Bid, Erdogan Tells Biden

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeUS

U.S. President Joe Biden is in London for an overnight stop Sunday enroute to Lithuania for the NATO summit in Vilnius, where it remains unlikely that the alliance will welcome Sweden as its 32nd member due to persistent objections from Turkey.

During the flight to Britain, Biden spoke on the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a last-minute push to pave the way toward Ankara agreeing to Sweden’s accession — a process that must be unanimous among all current members.

In a readout of the call, Ankara stated that Sweden has taken some steps in the right direction but has not made sufficient progress to support Stockholm’s application to join NATO.

Hungary also opposes Sweden’s bid but has said it will approve it if Turkey assents.

Biden, British leaders to meet

On Monday Biden will meet with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and King Charles to discuss various bilateral issues and climate financing for developing nations.

It will be Biden and Sunak’s sixth meeting in six months. In June, Biden hosted Sunak at the White House, committing to the Atlantic Declaration to cooperate on advanced technologies, clean energy, and critical minerals to counter China’s clout around the world.

Biden heads to Vilnius Monday evening for a two-day meeting with NATO leaders where they will discuss bolstering support for Ukraine, which includes hashing out the final wording of a compromise communique that will signal to Kyiv it is moving closer to membership without promises of a quick accession. He has repeatedly said Ukraine must make additional reforms to qualify for NATO membership.

In an interview taped last week, Biden told CNN he thinks it is premature to call for a vote on Ukraine joining NATO.

“I don’t think it’s ready for membership in NATO,” Biden said. “I don’t think there’s unanimity in NATO now …in the middle of a war. If the war is going on [and Ukraine was a NATO member], then we’re all in the war. We’re at war with Russia,” since NATO’s charter calls for all its members to defend any individual country when it is attacked.

Next stop: Helsinki

White House correspondent Anita Powell and VOA’s Ken Bredemeier contributed to this report.
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300 Migrants Missing at Sea Near Spanish Canary Islands: Aid Group

Posted on 07/10/2023 by SeeEU

At least 300 people who were traveling on three migrant boats from Senegal to Spain’s Canary Islands have disappeared, migrant aid group Walking Borders said Sunday.

Two boats, one carrying about 65 people and the other with between 50 and 60 on board, have been missing for 15 days since they left Senegal to try to reach Spain, Helena Maleno of Walking Borders told Reuters.

A third boat left Senegal on June 27 with about 200 people aboard.

The families of those on board have not heard from them since they left, Maleno said.

All three boats left Kafountine in the south of Senegal, which is about 1,700 kilometers (1,057 miles) from Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands.

“The families are very worried. There [are] about 300 people from the same area of Senegal. They have left because of the instability in Senegal,” Maleno said.

The Canary Islands off the coast of West Africa have become the main destination for migrants trying to reach Spain, with a much smaller number also seeking to cross the Mediterranean Sea to the Spanish mainland. Summer is the busiest period for all attempted crossings.

The Atlantic migration route, one of the deadliest in the world, is typically used by migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. At least 559 people — including 22 children — died in 2022 in attempts to reach the Canary Islands, according to data from the U.N.’s International Organization for Migration.
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In Call With Turkey’s Erdogan, Biden Expresses Support for Sweden’s NATO Bid

Posted on 07/09/2023 by SeeUS

U.S. President Joe Biden expressed a desire to see Sweden join NATO “as soon as possible” in a phone call with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in which they discussed Sweden’s bid to become a member of the Western alliance, the White House said Sunday.

Turkey, along with Hungary, has been a stumbling block to Sweden’s bid, which requires unanimous approval by all NATO members.

Erdogan told Biden that Stockholm has taken steps in the right direction for Ankara to ratify its bid, referring to an anti-terrorism law, but said these steps were not useful as Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) supporters continued to hold demonstrations in Sweden, the Turkish presidency’s communications directorate said separately Sunday.

Biden “conveyed his desire to welcome Sweden into NATO as soon as possible,” the White House said in a statement.

The leaders agreed to meet face-to-face in Vilnius, Lithuania, at an upcoming NATO summit and discuss bilateral relations and regional issues in detail, the Turkish presidency also said.

On Thursday, Sweden failed to convince Turkey to lift its block on Stockholm’s path to NATO membership in a foreign minister-level meeting, as Ankara requested more action in the fight against terrorism.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he would convene a meeting Monday between Erdogan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Vilnius.

Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership last year, abandoning policies of military non-alignment that had lasted through the decades of the Cold War in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

While Finland’s NATO membership was green-lighted in April, Turkey and Hungary have yet to clear Sweden’s bid. Stockholm has been working to join at next week’s NATO summit in Vilnius.

During their call, Biden and Erdogan also discussed the delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, and Ukraine’s aim to join NATO, according to the Turkish presidency’s readout.
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Gabon President Bongo to Run for Reelection in August

Posted on 07/09/2023 by SeeAF

Gabon’s President Ali Bongo will run for reelection in August, he said on Sunday, in a bid to extend his family’s 56-year grip on power in the central African country.

“Because nothing matters more than your success, I am announcing today that I am a candidate,” Bongo told a small crowd of cheering supporters.

Elections are scheduled for Aug. 26.

Bongo, 64, has been president of the oil-producing nation for two seven-year terms since succeeding his father Omar, who died in 2009 after ruling since 1967. Gabon has no constitutional term limits.

Both of Bongo’s election wins were disputed by the opposition, which said he won fraudulently. His 2016 victory triggered deadly clashes between police and protesters during which the parliament building was gutted by fire.

Bongo’s reelection bid was thrown into doubt when he suffered a stroke in October 2018 and was flown to Morocco for medical treatment. He spent three months abroad but returned shortly after a coup attempt was thwarted in his absence.
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Ahead of NATO Summit, US Defends Sending Cluster Bombs to Ukraine

Posted on 07/09/2023 by SeeEU

As NATO members prepare for their upcoming summit in Vilnius, the U.S. has again justified its decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine. The chances of Kyiv joining NATO anytime soon, however, are almost nil, as VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports.
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